The public information meeting held Thursday night also outlined proposals to reconfigure the lake and naturalize its banks.
This article from the Record outlines the plans.
Victoria Park lake Shown in this May, 2007 file photo.
David Bebee, Record staff file photo
KITCHENER — Some people don’t want the flagpole in the middle of Victoria Park’s lake to disappear.
Others questioned whether the planned rehabilitation work at the lake will sufficiently address the perennial, and to some problematic, goose population.
But for the most part, there was unanimous agreement Thursday night at an information session on the plan — it’s time to save the lake.
“Something definitely needs to be done,” said David Kuhn, who ran for the ward’s council seat last fall. “It’s not pleasant when you come into the park and all you smell is that lake.”
Its less-than-desirable conditions are something that Jeremy Shantz and his wife, Bridget Hinnegan, talk about. Improvements could go a long way toward attracting people to that part of the park, Shantz said.
“It would be a picturesque place to put my canoe in the water,” he said.
While she was interested in some of the proposed changes to the lake’s edges, Hinnegan said she hoped that as many trees as possible are preserved during the project.
Work to reconfigure the lake, improve its outlet structure, naturalize its banks and remove as much as 33,000 cubic metres of sediment could begin late this year. A second phase will see upstream improvements made. Total costs will be approximately $16 million. For the next four years, about one-third of the money collected through the city’s new stormwater management fee will be dedicated to the project.
Kitchener resident Ann Archer said she’s pleased with the idea to extend the lakefront walkway around the front of the Boathouse. Her husband, Toivo Vaino, said the construction of a small fore bay to catch much of the incoming sediment will result in cleaner water for the rest of the lake.
Still, he expressed concerns that the plans will not adequately address the problem of floating algae. “I personally feel that crews should be hired to skim off the algae constantly.”
Staff are recommending that the flagpole bearing the Maple Leaf be removed to help return the lake to its original romantic landscape. It’s a move that could meet with resistance, Kuhn predicted.
“I think a lot of people would notice if it was gone,” he said. “It’s a symbol of national pride.”
Coun. Frank Etherington said he ran for office largely because of the lake issue. “I’m delighted with what has happened,” he said. “It’s way overdue.”
The only thing that concerns him is that the project is going to be a messy one. “But I think most people understand that.”
One information board cautioned residents to expect considerable truck traffic and noise, and that dredged material may be stored temporarily on site. The amount of sediment to be dredged could represent more than 3,000 truckloads.
As for those geese, some of them were rounded up and trucked away Thursday on their annual trip to “summer camp,” as Etherington called it. Officials know some of them will make their way back by the fall.
City engineer Grant Murphy said the project will see plantings done along the water’s edge that discourage geese from populating the lake. “Basically the geese don’t like long, tall grass,” he said.
Once the work is done, Bob Sharpe, a member of the Victoria Park Working Group, envisions a fresher, cleaner, cooler oasis in the heart of the city.
“It will be an enhancement of the romantic landscape,” he said. “We’re a fortunate city to have it to begin with.”
Another public information session will be held in November before construction begins.
Others questioned whether the planned rehabilitation work at the lake will sufficiently address the perennial, and to some problematic, goose population.
But for the most part, there was unanimous agreement Thursday night at an information session on the plan — it’s time to save the lake.
“Something definitely needs to be done,” said David Kuhn, who ran for the ward’s council seat last fall. “It’s not pleasant when you come into the park and all you smell is that lake.”
Its less-than-desirable conditions are something that Jeremy Shantz and his wife, Bridget Hinnegan, talk about. Improvements could go a long way toward attracting people to that part of the park, Shantz said.
“It would be a picturesque place to put my canoe in the water,” he said.
While she was interested in some of the proposed changes to the lake’s edges, Hinnegan said she hoped that as many trees as possible are preserved during the project.
Work to reconfigure the lake, improve its outlet structure, naturalize its banks and remove as much as 33,000 cubic metres of sediment could begin late this year. A second phase will see upstream improvements made. Total costs will be approximately $16 million. For the next four years, about one-third of the money collected through the city’s new stormwater management fee will be dedicated to the project.
Kitchener resident Ann Archer said she’s pleased with the idea to extend the lakefront walkway around the front of the Boathouse. Her husband, Toivo Vaino, said the construction of a small fore bay to catch much of the incoming sediment will result in cleaner water for the rest of the lake.
Still, he expressed concerns that the plans will not adequately address the problem of floating algae. “I personally feel that crews should be hired to skim off the algae constantly.”
Staff are recommending that the flagpole bearing the Maple Leaf be removed to help return the lake to its original romantic landscape. It’s a move that could meet with resistance, Kuhn predicted.
“I think a lot of people would notice if it was gone,” he said. “It’s a symbol of national pride.”
Coun. Frank Etherington said he ran for office largely because of the lake issue. “I’m delighted with what has happened,” he said. “It’s way overdue.”
The only thing that concerns him is that the project is going to be a messy one. “But I think most people understand that.”
One information board cautioned residents to expect considerable truck traffic and noise, and that dredged material may be stored temporarily on site. The amount of sediment to be dredged could represent more than 3,000 truckloads.
As for those geese, some of them were rounded up and trucked away Thursday on their annual trip to “summer camp,” as Etherington called it. Officials know some of them will make their way back by the fall.
City engineer Grant Murphy said the project will see plantings done along the water’s edge that discourage geese from populating the lake. “Basically the geese don’t like long, tall grass,” he said.
Once the work is done, Bob Sharpe, a member of the Victoria Park Working Group, envisions a fresher, cleaner, cooler oasis in the heart of the city.
“It will be an enhancement of the romantic landscape,” he said. “We’re a fortunate city to have it to begin with.”
Another public information session will be held in November before construction begins.
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